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Community members at a Sept. 17 open house shared ideas on the types of development they would like to see on the site of the former Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant (TCAAP).
In April, Ramsey County purchased the 427-acre parcel of land from the federal government for $28.5 million, and the land will be sold for private development. The Sept. 17 meeting was also an opportunity for curious citizens to ask questions about the project and get up to speed on its status.

Shoreview’s Sophia Keeley is seeing her hard work and dedication to the martial arts pay off. The 9-year-old karate kid received her brown belt -- the seventh of eight belts -- from Master Jake Erling at The Art Martial Arts Academy in Falcon Heights on Saturday, Sept. 14.
The fourth grader at Turtle Lake Elementary School has been studying karate since she was four and is poised to become one of the youngest students at The Art to climb up the ranks.

Rogers Lake boaters, start your engines.
The Mendota Heights City Council approved an ordinance during its Sept. 17 meeting that will allow people to use boats with electric motors on Rogers Lake south of Wagon Wheel Trail. The move is a reversal from the council’s stance last summer, when it decided not to pursue an ordinance amendment on electric motors despite a petition from a Rogers Lake homeowners association.

Most people would say police officers rarely get the thanks they deserve for their service.
While that may be true, you can assuage your guilt slightly knowing the exemplary work of local police officers has not gone unnoticed: officers from South St. Paul, Mendota Heights, Inver Grove Heights and West St. Paul received awards from the Dakota County Chiefs of Police Association for putting their own lives in jeopardy, saving others and keeping their cool.

If you don’t understand how someone can get riled up over a parking lot, just ask the business that owns it. Or the city of South St. Paul. Or the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
All three entities have an opinion about the future of a used car sales lot on the 1400 block Concord Street. The dispute stems from a request by the property owner, Inver Grove Heights Storage and Rental, to double the capacity of the lot used by its tenant, Footh Automotive.

The St. Paul Public Library has put out an open-ended request for proposals to find a new owner for Arlington Hills Library, a historic Carnegie building located at 1105 Greenbrier St. The library’s been in the Payne-Phalen community for nearly a century.
The public library will be relocating next spring to the new Payne-Maryland Project, a one-stop shop community center, which also will include recreation facilities.
Brian Tourtelotte, project manager for the Payne-Maryland project, said “construction is moving along nicely.”

Two men were sentenced to more than 21 years in prison for prostituting a 17-year-old girl and an 18-year-old woman in multiple locations in St. Paul.
The sentences may be the longest in Minnesota history, according to the Ramsey County attorney’s office.
Fonati McArthur Diggs, 24, of Northfield and Timothy Denzel Cross, 20, of St. Paul were found guilty of engaging in both first- and second-degree sex trafficking.

A 92-year-old East Side man is dead after being struck by an SUV while he was driving his Honda motorcycle.
Autumn Brenae Mason, 26, of Vadnais Heights is charged with one count of criminal vehicular homicide in Kromschroeder’s death, according to the Ramsey County attorney’s office.
The man’s daughter Jan Braaten said her father, Roy W. Kromschroeder, was on a routine early morning motorcycle ride in his neighborhood on his way to walk inside Maplewood Mall with friends.

Though beating victim Raymond Widstrand has a long ways to go, his family is seeing his condition improve every day, his sister Alice told the Review.
The family has been finding daily ways to stay positive, posting updates on the 27-year-old’s CaringBridge site.
A Sept. 16 post reads: “Ray had a good day in rehabilitation. He keeps on impressing the therapist with his progress. Keep up the hard work Ray!”

Erick’s Bar sits near the intersection of East Seventh and Forest streets, on a small triangular plot of land. (photos by Patrick Larkin/Review)

Erick’s Bar sits in what is now a concrete island on East Seventh Street, surrounded by empty St. Paul Port Authority land.
But it wasn’t always that way. The place has a long history, from the times when blue-collar workers poured out from nearby factories. Workers at 3M, Whirlpool, Northern Malleable Iron, a shingle factory, and Hospital Linens all came out to the bar after work to drink and socialize.
For the past three and a half decades, Gary Erickson has owned the place, which is located at 949 E. Seventh St. He’s been at his bar, rain, shine or sleet, seven days a week.